The Legend of Shut Eye Island

The Legend of Shut Eye Island

Long time ago there was an old blind man who lived in the Shut Eye Island (Pulau Timbun Mata), Sabah, Malaysia. Every day he used to sit in the sun outside his house for looking after paddy which his son had placed there to dry. Whenever there were chickens came to eat the paddy, he used a long stick to bang the ground to chase them away.

One day, his grandson played a trick on him. He caught a couple of crabs on the river and placed them on the paddy. Because of their movement, it made a noise just like chickens eating the paddy. (also read : Folklore of Loke Nggerang)

Hearing the information from his grandson, the old man banged on the ground with his stick. But the crabs were not frightened because they did not understand what this sound meant. So they continued to eat the paddy.

“Ha, ha, Ha!” laughed the boy.

Suddenly, there was a terrible roar like the firing of cannon. And this terrible roar was followed by appearing of an old man with a long white beard in a cloud of smoke.

He pointed his wand at the boy. “You should never laugh at your grandfather,” he said, “especially as he is blind.”

Before the boy could answer, suddenly a strong wind started to blow and the sky became black. A cloud of red smoke shot out of the top of a hill in the center of the island. Tons of rock and boiling mud were thrown high into the air. All the houses on the island were destroyed and everyone living on the island was turned into stone. For that event, people around the island called it “Pulau Timbun Mata” (the Shut Eye Island). Even today there are many people know The Legend of Shut Eye Island. And if you visit the island, all you can see are some strange-looking rocks which resemble people.

That’s all the story of The Legend of Shut Eye Island, Sabah, Malaysia. (also read other story in Indonesian version at : Merubah Nasib itu Pilihan)